Nuveen Asset Management LLC Lowers Stake in Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Free Report) by 67.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 92,593 shares of the company's stock after selling 195,959 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 0.28% of Papa Johns International worth $3,803,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Papa Johns International during the 4th quarter worth about $559,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Papa Johns International during the 4th quarter worth about $5,647,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of Papa Johns International by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,500,739 shares of the company's stock worth $61,635,000 after purchasing an additional 102,128 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Papa Johns International by 31.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 387,699 shares of the company's stock worth $15,923,000 after purchasing an additional 93,561 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Papa Johns International by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 389,837 shares of the company's stock worth $16,011,000 after purchasing an additional 59,404 shares during the last quarter.

Papa Johns International Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of Papa Johns International stock traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $47.51. The stock had a trading volume of 1,393,996 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,223,510. The firm has a market cap of $1.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $37.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.47. Papa Johns International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.16 and a 12-month high of $60.75.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $518.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $512.48 million. Papa Johns International had a net margin of 4.51% and a negative return on equity of 19.61%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.67 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Papa Johns International, Inc. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Papa Johns International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. Papa Johns International's payout ratio is currently 78.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Papa Johns International to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Papa Johns International in a report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Papa Johns International from $45.00 to $38.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Papa Johns International from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of Papa Johns International in a report on Monday, May 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Papa Johns International presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $51.25.

Papa Johns International Company Profile

Papa John's International, Inc engages in the operation and franchise of pizza delivery and carryout restaurants. It operates through the following segments: Domestic Company-owned Restaurants, North America Franchising, North America Commissaries, International Operations, and All Others. The Domestic Company-Owned Restaurants segment consists of retail sales of pizza and side items, breadsticks, cheese sticks, chicken poppers and wings, dessert items, and canned and bottled beverages.